Rohingya repatriation to begin this month, expects FM
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen on Sunday hoped that the repatriation of Rohingyas to their place of origin in Rakhine State will begin this month on a small scale.
“I’m very positive….I’m expecting that we can start this month,” he said while talking to a small group of reporters at his office, UNB reports.
Dr Momen also shared a positive impression that he received from the meetings he held in Bangkok recently on the sidelines of the 26th Asean Regional Forum (ARF).
Referring to his meeting with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, he said both India and China built houses in Myanmar where returnees (Rohingyas) can stay.
They felt that it is good time to resume the repatriation of Rohingyas.
He sought India’s support for the early repatriation of Rohingyas and Jaishankar assured of India’s support in this regard.
On July 24, Dr Momen expected to see the commencement of Rohingya repatriation before September and urged the UN to work more in Rakhine State of Myanmar to help create a conducive environment there so that Rohingyas can get back the confidence to return to their place of origin.
On the day, he also said the first batch of Rohingya repatriation will begin before September or before the UN General Assembly but things depend on Myanmar as they created the problem.
"It's my belief. But all depend on Myanmar who created the problem. Solution lies in Myanmar," he said indicating that Myanmar wants to avoid criticisms in the UNGA.
The Foreign Minister said Myanmar, after Bangladesh's extensive discussions with China, is showing a kind of willingness regarding repatriation.
Bangladesh is currently hosting over 1.1 million Rohingyas and most of them entered the country since August 25 amid military crackdowns and "ethnic cleansing" of the Rohingya minority.
Though Bangladesh and Myanmar signed a repatriation deal on November 23, 2017, not a single person has so far been repatriated.
On January 16, 2018 Bangladesh and Myanmar signed a document on “Physical Arrangement”, which was supposed to facilitate the return of Rohingyas to their homeland.
The “Physical Arrangement” stipulates that the repatriation will be completed preferably within two years from the start of repatriation.
The first batch of Rohingyas was scheduled to return on November 15 last year but it was halted amid unwillingness of Rohingyas to return for lack of a congenial environment in Rakhine.
